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Virgin Trains East Coast rail staff strike under way Virgin Trains East Coast strike 'solid' says RMT
(about 3 hours later)
Workers on Virgin Trains East Coast have begun a 24-hour strike in a long-running dispute over jobs. A strike by workers on Virgin Trains East Coast has been well-supported, the RMT union has said.
The RMT union said about 1,800 members, including train crew and some drivers, were taking action against threatened job cuts and disputes over working conditions and safety. Virgin said it was running a full timetable, with some minor changes. Three services have had their route altered because of a shortage of crew.
General secretary Mick Cash said: "RMT will not sit back while nearly 200 members' jobs are under threat." The RMT accused the company of mounting "the biggest scabbing operation in recent rail history".
Virgin Trains said it would be running a full timetable during the strike. It said managers had been "dragged in from across the country" to staff services.
Virgin Trains East Coast, which operates services between London, north-east England and Scotland, said it was making changes to customer-facing roles which would "see a single person take responsibility for the customer experience on our trains". Virgin, which operates services between London, north-east England and Scotland, said it was making changes to customer-facing roles which would "see a single person take responsibility for the customer experience on our trains".
"This will have no impact on safety, and will result in a better experience for customers," a statement said. "This will have no impact on safety, and will result in a better experience for customers," it said.
The RMT union claims the measures would lead to job cuts and impact on working conditions and safety measures which currently ensure a guard on every train. The RMT said around 200 jobs were threatened, and that 1,800 members were taking part in the strike,
It said nearly 200 jobs were threatened by the cuts and remaining staff would be expected to cover the extra work. 'Commandeer our trains'
Its members have been instructed not to work any shifts between 00:01 and 23:59 BST on Monday. The general secretary Mick Cash said: "RMT members are solid and united in support of the action in defence of jobs and safety on Virgin East Coast this morning and the trade union movement salutes them. Pickets are out at all key locations.
Contingency plans "It is clear that Virgin and Stagecoach have mounted the biggest and most expensive scabbing operation in recent rail history with managers from across the country dragged in to commandeer our trains.
General secretary Mick Cash said: "We will also not tolerate the cavalier attitude to safety that is now on show as the company mobilises its scab army of managers." "If the company had put half the effort into resolving this dispute that they have piled into their scabbing plans we could have sorted the core issues that led to this strike.
David Horne, managing director of Virgin Trains East Coast, said: "We have worked hard to ensure there are comprehensive contingency plans in place and I want to reassure our customers that our timetable will be unaffected. "The union will be taking ‎part in further talks later this week."
"We're extremely disappointed with the RMT's decision to proceed with strike action when we have given assurances on each point raised by the union. RMT members have been instructed not to work any shifts between 00:01 and 23:59 BST on Monday.
"On Wednesday, we agreed to the specific concessions set out by the RMT, but despite this they have decided to go ahead with today's walkout."
He said the changes the company was making was part of a "customer-centric revolution".
"With our guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies, no impact on safety, and a full timetable in place during today's walkout, this strike is costing RMT members pay for no reason, particularly as the RMT has agreed to hold further talks with us later this week," he said.
Have you been affected by the strike? You can share your comments by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.Have you been affected by the strike? You can share your comments by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
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